Fire activity was low in 2022 due to a lack of hot, dry weather.
The majority of notable fire incidents occurred in January and February of 2022. On 1 January, a fire started in the Melbourne suburb of Maribyrnong in Victoria, while another fire from South Australia crossed into Victoria burning forest and farmland.
In WA, a fire on 11 January around Eagle Bay and Dunsborough consumed over 220 hectares (ha) of bushland. A fire near Lucindale (SA) started on 19 January and burned out of control, leading to the death of one firefighter and serious injury to another.
Heatwave conditions in the west of WA contributed to extreme fire danger in early February, leading to multiple fires between 4 and 6 February.
Areas burnt in 202w
At least four homes and 45,000 ha of bushland were burnt.
Nationally the area burnt was small. The total area burnt was 27 Mha, 17% more than the previous year but still 40% below the 2000–2021 average. Fire activity was near or below average across almost all of Australia. Relatively high fire activity only occurred in the Gascoyne region in western WA.
Remotely sensed fuel moisture content provides a measure of landscape flammability. Nationally, the minimum value observed during the year was the highest since before 2000, indicating unfavourable conditions for bushfires.
Regionally, drier than average fuel moisture conditions occurred in several regions in WA, especially in the southern inland parts of the state.
Total fire carbon emissions were 72 Mt carbon. They were 2% greater than in 2021 but still 49% below the 2000–2021 average emissions. As in other years, savanna fires in northern Australia were responsible for the majority of fire emissions.
